Portable purse strap hook

ABSTRACT

The portable purse strap hook is slidably and removably mounted on a purse strap. The portable purse strap hook includes a flexible sheet having at least one releasable fastener attached thereto for releasably fastening laterally opposed ends thereof to form a sleeve slidably disposed on the purse strap. A hook is pivotally secured to the inner surface of the flexible sheet. The hook is pivotal between a stored position within the sleeve and a position extending from the sleeve so that the hook may be used to hang the purse from a stationary support.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 61/660,496, filed Jun. 15, 2012.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

The present invention relates to supports, and particularly to a portable retainer and support for purses, handbags and the like.

2. Description of the Related Art

Purses, handbags and the like are typically carried by the user to numerous locations throughout the day. When using a public restroom or visiting similar unsanitary locations, there is often no hygienic surface for supporting the purse or handbag while the user makes use of the facilities. The floors of such locations are not cleaned often enough to reliably rest the purse or handbag thereon, and not all public restroom stalls are provided with hooks for supporting the purse or handbag off above the floor. It would be desirable to provide a portable hook device which could be carried by the user in the purse or handbag for use in such situations.

Thus, a portable purse strap hook solving the aforementioned problems is desired.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The portable purse strap hook is a retainer for purse straps that is slidably and removably mounted on a purse strap. The portable purse strap hook includes a flexible sheet having opposed inner and outer surfaces. At least one releasable fastener is disposed on the sheet for releasably fastening laterally opposed ends of the flexible sheet to one another. The at least one releasable fastener may be a snap fastener, such that a male portion thereof is attached to one of the laterally opposed ends of the flexible sheet, and a female portion thereof is attached to the other one of the laterally opposed ends of the flexible sheet.

A hook is pivotally secured to the inner surface of the flexible sheet. Preferably, the hook includes opposed free and fixed ends, the hook portion being formed on the free end. The fixed end is pivotally secured to either the male or the female portion of the snap fastener. In use, when the flexible sheet is in an open configuration, the purse strap may be positioned to extend longitudinally across a central portion of the inner surface of the flexible sheet. The at least one releasable fastener is then fastened to secure the sheet around the purse strap, the flexible sheet in the closed configuration forming a sliding cuff about the purse strap. The hook is pivotally deployable from within the flexible sheet to extend outwardly therefrom.

These and other features of the present invention will become readily apparent upon further review of the following specification and drawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a portable purse strap hook according to the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the portable purse strap hook of FIG. 1 in an open configuration.

FIG. 3 is a perspective view of the portable purse strap hook of FIG. 1 in a closed configuration, showing the hook in a stored state.

Similar reference characters denote corresponding features consistently throughout the attached drawings.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

As shown in FIG. 1, the portable purse strap hook 10 is slidably and removably mounted on a purse strap S. It should be understood that the portable purse strap hook 10 may be used with any type of purse, handbag or any other article including a strap or the like. As best shown in FIG. 2, the portable purse strap hook 10 includes a flexible sheet 12 having opposed inner and outer surfaces 14, 16, respectively. At least one releasable fastener is disposed on the sheet 12 for releasably fastening laterally opposed ends or sides of the flexible sheet 12 to one another. Although shown as being square in FIG. 2, it should be understood that flexible sheet 12 may have any desired dimensions or configuration. Exemplary dimensions for the flexible sheet 12 corresponding to the example shown in FIG. 2 include a lateral width of approximately four inches and a longitudinal length of approximately four inches. The flexible sheet 12 may be formed from any suitable type of material, such as leather, fabric or the like.

Any suitable type of releasable fastener may be utilized. In the preferred embodiment, the releasable fastener is a snap fastener. As shown in FIGS. 1-3, a pair of snap fasteners are provided, although it should be understood that any desired number of fasteners, or any type of fasteners (e.g., mating hook and loop fasteners, a zipper, buttons etc.), may be utilized. In the embodiment illustrated, a male portion 20 of the snap fastener is secured to one of the laterally opposed ends of the flexible sheet 12, and a corresponding female portion 22 is secured to the other one of the laterally opposed ends of the flexible sheet 12. Using the exemplary dimensions given above for flexible sheet 12, the male and female portions 20, 22 are preferably positioned approximately one-quarter of an inch from the corresponding laterally-opposed edges of the flexible sheet 12.

A hook 18 is pivotally secured to the inner surface 14 of the flexible sheet 12. Preferably, the hook 18 includes opposed free and fixed ends, the hook portion being formed on the free end thereof. The fixed end, as shown, is pivotally secured to one of the male and female portions 20, 22 of the snap fastener. In FIG. 2, the fixed end of hook 18 is shown as being pivotally secured to one of the female portions 22, although it should be understood that the hook 18 may alternatively be secured to one of the male portions 20, or may be separately attached to the sheet 12 by a rivet or other pivot pin. Using the exemplary dimensions given above, the hook 18 is preferably approximately between one and one-half and two inches in length, allowing it to easily fit between the two female portions 22 when folded, as shown in solid lines in the configuration shown in FIG. 2. The hook 18 may be formed from any suitable material, such as flat brass or the like. An eyelet formed through the fixed end of the hook 18 is dimensioned to securely engage with the corresponding female fastener portion 22.

In use, when the flexible sheet 12 is in an open configuration (as in FIG. 2), the purse strap S may be positioned to extend longitudinally across a central portion of the inner surface 14 of the flexible sheet 12. The at least one releasable fastener is then fastened to hold the purse strap within the flexible sheet 12. The flexible sheet 12, in the closed configuration, forms a sliding sleeve or cuff about the purse strap S, as shown in FIG. 3. The hook 18 is pivotally deployable from within the flexible sheet 12 to extend outwardly therefrom, as in FIG. 1. This allows the purse associated with the purse strap S to be suspended from any desired support surface, such as a stall door or the like. In the closed configuration, the hook 18 pivoted to the stored state. The portable purse hook 10 may be easily carried within the purse or handbag for use as needed.

It is to be understood that the present invention is not limited to the embodiments described above, but encompasses any and all embodiments within the scope of the following claims. 

I claim:
 1. A portable purse strap hook, comprising: a flexible sheet having opposed inner and outer surfaces and laterally opposed ends; at least one releasable fastener attached to the sheet for releasably fastening the laterally opposed ends of the flexible sheet to one another to form a sleeve adapted for attachment to a purse strap; and a hook pivotally secured to the inner surface of the flexible sheet, the hook being pivotal between an open position extending from the sleeve and a stored position disposed within the sleeve.
 2. The portable purse strap hook as recited in claim 1, wherein said at least one releasable fastener comprises at least one snap fastener having a male portion attached to one of the laterally opposed ends of said flexible sheet and a mating female portion attached to the opposite end of said flexible sheet.
 3. The portable purse strap hook as recited in claim 2, wherein said hook comprises opposed free and fixed ends, the fixed end being pivotally secured to one of the portions of the at least one snap fastener.
 4. The portable purse strap hook as recited in claim 3, wherein the male and female portions of the at least one snap fastener are each positioned approximately one-quarter of an inch from a respective one of the laterally opposed ends.
 5. The portable purse strap hook as recited in claim 1, wherein said flexible sheet is substantially rectangular.
 6. The portable purse strap hook as recited in claim 1, wherein said flexible sheet is substantially square.
 7. The portable purse strap hook as recited in claim 1, wherein: said sheet has longitudinally opposed ends; and said at least one releasable fastener comprises a pair of snap fasteners, each of the snap fasteners being positioned adjacent a respective one of the longitudinally opposed ends of said flexible sheet.
 8. The portable purse strap hook as recited in claim 9, wherein the hook extends between the pair of snap fasteners when in the stored position.
 9. A portable purse strap hook, comprising: a flexible sheet having opposed inner and outer surfaces, laterally opposed ends, and longitudinally opposed ends; a pair of releasable fasteners attached to the sheet for releasably fastening the laterally opposed ends of the flexible sheet to one another to form a sleeve adapted for attachment to a purse strap, each of the releasable fasteners being positioned adjacent a respective one of the longitudinally opposed ends of said flexible sheet; and a hook pivotally secured to the inner surface of the flexible sheet, the hook being pivotal between an open position extending from the sleeve and a stored position disposed within the sleeve.
 10. The portable purse strap hook as recited in claim 9, wherein each said releasable fastener comprises a snap fastener having a male portion attached to one of the laterally opposed ends of said flexible sheet and a mating female portion attached to the other one of the laterally opposed ends of said flexible sheet.
 11. The portable purse strap hook as recited in claim 10, wherein said hook comprises opposed free and fixed ends, the fixed end being pivotally secured to one of the portions of one of the snap fasteners.
 12. The portable purse strap hook as recited in claim 9, wherein said flexible sheet is substantially rectangular.
 13. The portable purse strap hook as recited in claim 9, wherein said flexible sheet is substantially square.
 14. The portable purse strap hook as recited in claim 16, wherein each said releasable fastener comprises a snap fastener having a male portion attached to one of the laterally opposed ends of said flexible sheet and a mating female portion attached to the other one of the laterally opposed ends of said flexible sheet, the male and female portions of the snap fasteners each being positioned approximately one-quarter of an inch from a respective one of the laterally opposed ends.
 15. The portable purse strap hook as recited in claim 9, wherein the hook extends between the pair of snap fasteners when in the stored position.
 16. A portable purse strap hook, comprising: a purse having a strap; a flexible, elongated sheet having opposed inner and outer surfaces, laterally opposed ends, and longitudinally opposed ends, the sheet being foldable around the strap of the purse, the laterally opposed ends of the sheet being secured to each other at the longitudinally ends to form a sleeve around the purse strap; and a hook having a stem and an arcuately curved portion extending from the stem, the stem having an end pivotally attached to the inner surface of the sheet, the hook being pivotal between an open position in which the arcuately curved portion is adapted for hooking onto a support to suspend the purse, and a closed position in which the hook is stored entirely within the sleeve.
 17. The portable purse strap hook according to claim 16, wherein the sleeve is slidable on the purse strap.
 18. The portable purse strap hook according to claim 16, further comprising mating releasable fasteners disposed on the lateral ends of the sheet adjacent the longitudinal ends, whereby the sleeve is removably disposed on the purse strap.
 19. The portable purse strap hook according to claim 18, wherein said mating releasable fasteners comprise snap fasteners.
 20. The portable purse strap hook according to claim 19, wherein the stem of said hook has an eyelet defined therein, the eyelet being pivotally disposed on one of said snap fasteners, the arcuately curved portion of said hook being pivotal between said mating snap fasteners at the opposing longitudinal ends of the sleeve. 